My Sixtieth Birthday - Gretna Green - Memories # 1

(It would be nice to read this post as a sequel my Chapters 1 to 4 of the series "Episode" - clicking here would take you the first chapter)

Although it has been over 6 years that I celebrated the day when I completed 60 years of age, I still remember it as if it was yesterday.

It was December 2005 that we decided to spend the Christmas and New Year with our children and grand-children in London. Chaitali & Raja had two young children, Anurag & Jharna had yet to start their family. The children had planned a 3-4 day holiday in UK, starting from London and going north to Scotland and staying over at St. Andrews - the home of golf, where the game has nurtured for over 600 years. Anurag and Raja were both golf buffs - so that was the destination organized for my birthday bash and ringing in the New Year.

(Click here if you wish to know more about St Andrews)

Being a group of 6 adults and 2 growing up children and the thought of being cramped in Chaitali's Honda CRV for 5 days in travel was not very attractive - and it was decided to hire a bigger vehicle, even a 7-seater would be cramped, so Raja and I set out to get a bigger vehicle and we ended up hiring a 9-seater SUV for the trip. The route and halts were planned. On the 29th - we were driving through Gretna Green, that is a small village on the border of Scotland and England (click here for location map - zoom in or out), just within the Scottish side. Historically - it had been a village of blacksmiths; but its vantage position made it ideally suited for runaway marriages of the youngsters from the conservative English society.

Gretna's famous "runaway marriages" began in 1753 when Lord Hardwicke's Marriage Act was passed in England; it stated that if both parties to a marriage were not at least 21 years old, then parents had to consent to the marriage. The Act did not apply in Scotland, where it was possible for boys to marry at 14 and girls at 12 years old with or without parental consent (see Marriage in Scotland). Many elopers fled England, and the first Scottish village they encountered was Gretna Green. The Old Blacksmith's Shop, built around 1712, and Gretna Hall Blacksmith's Shop (1710) became, in popular folklore at least, the focal tourist points for the marriage trade. The Old Blacksmith's opened to the public as a visitor attraction as early as 1887. (courtesy Wikipedia).

In South India - there is custom where the couple performs a marriage ceremony when the man reaches 60 years of age. So that clinched it - we decided to get married (once again). What a perfect and romantic choice of the venue - Gretna Green. and the historic Blacksmith Shop with the historic anvil which had witnessed millions of marriages performed by the blacksmith priests.

The "priest" put my hand on the anvil, the asked my wife Varsha to put hers on top of mine. He picked up the sledge-hammer, looked at Varsha and said, "It will just hurt a wee-bit ..." - literally draining the color from our faces. Then he gently tapped the anvil with the sledge-hammer making a resounding sound and said, "May the bond of this marriage be as strong as this steel." And thus the ceremony was over. We got a certificate of our marriage duly signed by the priest and witnessed by a couple that had come visiting from the U.S.A. He told to click the photos and it was over. Short and sweet.

After the marriage ceremony, we drove on - lunching and snacking on the way. We had a halt at a beautiful way side hotel along the highway. We checked into our respective rooms and then Raja dropped in, "Lets go for a drink."- he chirped. It was a most agreeable suggestion and we headed for the bar. I was expecting our whole gang to be there but we were the only ones from the group. They will be just joining, he said - must be freshening up after the drive. Anyway, we settled down with our beers and peanuts. It must have been another hour so so - and none of the others showed up. We went up to our room and what do we see - all the others were there. The room was decorated with balloons and a happy birthday sign. The bed was strewn with many gifts - all for me. Some tiny and interesting knick-knacks, some odd gadgets, chocolates etc etc., and in the middle was a laptop - an IBM Thinkpad. It had always been my desire to own a laptop. How well the family knows you, you cannot just fathom. I was overwhelmed and my eyes became moist. This was the best birthday I had had in my entire life. This was not the end of the party - we moved on next day.

Our next halt was at St. Andrews Bay - a hotel and a 5-star resort. St Andrews is also known worldwide as the "home of golf". This is in part because the Royal and Ancient Golf Club, founded in 1754, exercises legislative authority over the game worldwide (except in the United States and Mexico), and also because the famous links is the most frequent venue for The Open Championship, the oldest of golf's four major championships. Visitors travel to St Andrews in great numbers for several courses ranked amongst the finest in the world, as well as for the sandy beaches. Raja and Anurag are both great golf buffs - so this destination was a dream come true for both of them.

The resort was decorated beautifully for Christmas and the New Year with an indoor X'mas tree that must have been over 40 feet high. The dining area was impeccable, the service was beyond compare. Kunaal and Aaliya were yet to see their 5th and 2nd birthdays respectively - and they were treated like royalty by the staff of the resort. Had some of the best dishes and wines over here. In the evening there was a show which was again just out of the world. We retired to our rooms quite late in the early hours of the morning, next morning was bright and sunny although the temperature was below freezing.

After a sumptuous and a lazy breakfast - we set out to see the historic golf course and the local sights of St Andrews. The golf course was fully covered with at least 5"-6" of snow - yet we went on to the course to click the photographs near the flag of the 1st hole. There were few other areas of interest - including a golf museum. We spent some time there. There was a small practice golf course for toddlers and kids there and we ended up buying a whole lot of mementos from the museum shop.

We then drove on to our next stop which was Edinburgh. An Scottish couple - the Aldyth and Theo's house - were our destination and we had the evening tea at their place. Lovely people and with a zest for life and knowledge. they were both retired and well past their prime and yet so full of energy. It was always a pleasure to meet them. Click here to know them better.

We halted overnight at their place, and we enjoyed a bit of sight-seeing of Edinburgh the next day. Visited the castle, the local market and the high grounds from where we could get an the birds' eye view of the town. In the evening we left for London. Chatali also bought 2 electronic SUDOKU puzzles for Varsha and me from a cafe joint at an exit on the motorway. We reached my daughter's house well past midnight and were asleep after the long and hectic journey.

It was the best celebrated and the most memorable birthday of my life.

The Terrorists Have Succeeded - Random Thoughts # 13

It was past 8 pm, I wanted to see a movie with my wife at one of the malls in Saket - which is less than a couple of kilometers from the gate of our colony.

First I encountered a road block as soon as I got out of the colony gate in my car. There were armed cops at the road block and the traffic had to trickle through because of the bottle neck created by them. One vehicle at a time - the tail of the traffic must have been about a kilometer long. The cops had detained a couple of motorbikes on the side and were apparently checking their papers, and maybe pocketing some small denomination currency notes.

After considerable delay we reached the approach road behind the malls. Right in the middle of the road, there was a structure like a pill box, apparently made of sand bags and covered with a green sheet of  camouflage fabric. Propped up in the 'pill box' I could see a cop or or an army jawan who had his automatic rifle trained towards the traffic. Two more khaki uniformed men were checking the vehicles - getting the boot and the bonnet opened. Am not sure what they hoped to find.

Finally reached the entrance of the mall's underground parking. I had to open the bonnet and the boot again. One guard with a flashlight asked my wife to open the glove compartment, he shone his flashlight in that. He also scanned the rest of the car interior with his flashlight. Then we were asked to move on.

After getting off the car we had to enter the mall by an elevator - before entering the elevator we were made to pass through a metal sensor doorway, we were scanned by a metal detector (body scan). That too did not seem enough. We were frisked bodily by the private security agents at this point. My wife was asked to open her handbag and the female security guard peeped in rummaged the contents with her bare hands.

We went to the 2nd floor which had the ticket counter to the movie theater, got our tickets and we were once again frisked by metal detectors and body search by frisking. The security guard could feel a container in my coat pocket - which was the case for my spectacles. He asked me to take it out and show it him.

This is the life of a citizen in this free country in its capital city. You can imagine what it might be for a less privileged citizen.

The extremists/terrorists have succeeded in holding the entire country to ransom - just think about it. 


Note: This was a normal day - no high alerts. If a guard does notice a bomb or a gun and does face an actual terrorist. What will be his reaction? He either gets some greenbacks OR a bullet through him....

The IITF 2011 - through my eyes

As the curtain rises on the India International Trade Fair - popularly known as IITF - this year, I present the reader a few facts, figures and fiction about it.

The IITF is an annual feature that has been taking place at the Pragati Maidan every year. The literal meaning is "progress grounds"; and that is exactly what it stands for. The IITF is not just a major tourist attraction which is visited by lakhs of people very year. Over the years it has also become a venue of an outing for the entire family like a picnic ground. It is also a showcase of the produce of our country for the purpose of trade within the country as well as trade with foreign nations.


Turkey

The start of the IITF dates back to 1980. The 31st India International Trade Fair started this year on the 14th of November and ended on the 27th of November - as always. These 14 days literally change the face of Delhi as far as traffic and commuting is concerned. The metro also played an important role in the traffic manangement by helping millions to visit the fair from distant places like Rohini, Dwarka, Gurgaon and the like, so much so that even tickets for the fair were being sold at all metro stations. The Pragati Maidan metro station had over a dozen counters selling the IITF tickets and a direct entry point from the station into the trade fair was really a convenience that was not there in the previous IITFs. As per the reports - Delhi metro had sold about 7 lakh tickets - the number had to be curtailed and stopped on the weekends in both weeks of the fair and the crowed would have become unmanageable in case the sale of the tickets was not curtailed.

The ITPO authorities say that the total footfall this year was of only 11 lakhs this year as against the estimate of 15 lakhs. Invariably the tickets earmarked for the day got fully sold off on the week ends. The weekdays were relatively deserted especially in the morning hours. Possibly that fact that the fare is open for public for full days after the first four "business days" was never advertised well enough to reach the masses.

The sea of humanity - weekday afternoon

The last day of the fare was a mess. the crowds kept swelling, enough to drive anyone berserk - including the cops on duty - who were not trained enough to handle such situations. They started wielding their lathis on the hapless citizens.

The pattern of the trade fair had changed this year. Earlier the morning hours - up to 2 pm were business hours, after that the fair was open to the masses every day except on weekends when it was open to the general public for the whole day. This year the first 4 days were marked aside for business visitors - ticket value Rs 400/- (unless of course you had an invite from a stall holder) for the full opening hours (09.30 to 20.30 hrs.) and the next 10 days were kept for the general public - ticket value Rs 40/- . I could not utilize the free pass I had got during the business days and I went for the fair after it had bee declared open to the general public. However, I did take a wise decision and went early on a Monday morning. The crowd was still quite less around 9.45 am; the parking spot was a breeze - got it on Purana Quila Marg - just about 100 yards from the Gate No, 5 of the grounds.

 

Maharashtra



The security was tight, the queue appeared quite long, but I have to admit that the waiting was not too long and within 7-8 minutes I was inside the fair. I have to admire the efficiency of the security arrangements. I do not think that they would have successfully been able to prevent a person carrying - let us say - plastic explosives, however, they kept the queues moving at a reasonably good pace yet carrying out their duties with reasonable alacrity.



The Pragati Maidan is the largest exhibition ground in the country and it covers about 150 acres (approximately 0.6 square km). it is managed by ITPO (Indian Trade Promotion Organisation) which is the premier trade promotion body of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry of the Indian government. Being spread on large grounds one needs to come day for a full day even if the ntention is to just see the stall of your interest. The stalls could be devided into the following broad categories:

1. State or Union Territory Pavilions.

2. Foreign stalls.
3. Government of India or Public Sector Corporations like Railways, Defence, Ministry of Steel etc.
4. Food or eateries and restaurants.
5. Theatres etc.

The Ancient Caste System - displayed at Maharashtra



This annual event provides a common platform for the manufacturers, traders, exporters and importers. The fair displays comprises a wide range of products and services including Automobiles, Coir Products, Jute, Textiles, Garments, Household Appliances, Kitchen Appliances, Processed foods, Beverages, Confectionery, Drugs, Pharmaceuticals, Chemicals, Cosmetics, Bodycare & Health care products, Telecommunication, Power sector, Electronic Sector, Furniture, Home Furnishings, Sports Goods, Toys, Engineering Goods etc.

 Apart from that, the masses throng the fair for the change. the ticket values in the multiplexes are high (Rs 250/300) where as a family of four could come to the fare and just spend about the entire day here in that much amount in which the kids could enjoy the chhola bhature plus a kulfi or some chaat etc. The film at the Shakuntalam theatre would be free. Thus the fair becomes an attraction for the middle class and the lower middle class. You not only get to see the entire Panorama of the entire country and a bit of the show window of the other countries, you could also pick up a lot of trinkets and do some shopping of goods from any part of the world.

Award Winning Kerela Pavilion


Most of the state pavilions concentrated on their handicrafts, clothes, costume jewellery and other innovative home gadgets like face steamers, heater packs for the back and the knees, magic slates and the like. The individual food stalls of most pavilions were missing but you could get all the different varieties of the cuisines of the entire country at the food court. Prices were reasonable and in about Rs 300/- the family of 4 could indulge in this luxury. Maharashtra stole a march over other state foods and a full food bay was organised for Maharashtrian food.facing the Hall no 1. The best state pavilion award this year was bagged by Kerala.

Another notable feature this year was huge hoardings at the state pavilions depicting the respective chief ministers. Mayawati looking down upon you and from the opposite side you get the massive Jaylalitha. Mahrashtra pavilion had the hoarding of the twelve caste categories at its entrance titled "The Bara Balutedars", this was not only informative but was also unique in its own way. The Best International Stall Award was bagged by South Africa. 

Birds eye view - Foreign Stalls

Most of the foreign stalls were nothing great. Burma had a good display of precious and semi-precious stones - set into 18K gold. The prices of some items were as high as 3 to 6 lakh rupees. AND can you beat it, you had to pay cash. no credit cards. These stalls had a good array of jewellery for semi-precious stones. there was costume jewellery, dry fruits, and of course lots of textiles and clothes. Most of these stalls were housed in Hall 18.

Hall 12A, was a show case of consumer goods, electronics, gadgets, consumer durables and the like - nothing very impressive though - was as if you are walking through a mall. You could see a lot of LED and LCD TVs, Fridges, Washing Machines, GPS systems, Furniture, Storage equipment etc etc. Hall 1 was a smaller and a down market version of Hall 12A.

Ahhh - the food options. The entire ground is dotted with various food joints. You have kiosks for cold drinks, tea, coffee etc all over. There is sprinkling of restaurants too. However, the most sought after and crowded was the food court. It had cuisines from almost all Indian states plus a few other choices. There was a stall of Pakistan's curries and the kebabs too. The prices were reasonable along with a minimum acceptable quality level.

Delhi - exterior



The Pavilions of the Government Corporation, Defence etc were mostly quite colorless and of not much of interest to the common man. These pavilions, of course, had a wealth of information and knowledge for the discerning eye. The Defence pavilion had a redeeming feature - a dog show. There was an interesting poster that read, "You can be a dog's best friend!"

South Africa

The fair has reached such a gigantic size that it requires a few days of hard work to cover it fully - and unless I was being paid to do it ... no way. So dear readers - feel free to fill in all that I have missed in the comments columns.

Swadesh - the modern way - Random Thoughts # 10

The other day I received a forward from a friend which read "SAVE THE INDIAN RUPEE" in the subject line. It was really one of those forwards that stink of being created for the sake of propaganda or cults without giving much thought to the nature and implications of the contents. The types that would be created to protect vested interests.

The mail advocates buying products and services from only companies that are wholly Indian, and shunning the multinationals. The same multinationals that were invited by the Indian Government to set up Industrial and manufacturing units here. It was done to give a boost to the Indian economy, to provide opportunity to the immense labor force that is available here, and thus improve the standard and the life style of Indians. 

We indulge in such "swadeshi" rhetoric without any thought of the consequences of the actions that we most patriotically advocate. 

The mail read - 

1. Buy only products manufactured by WHOLLY INDIAN COMPANIES.

2. ENROLL as many people as possible for this cause.....

(click here if you wish to read the actual forward)

Let us for a moment consider that by our Swadeshi movement , we do succeed in managing to drive out the multinationals and they close shop. 

What would be the consequence?

Let us imagine that Unilever (formerly HLL) is closed down - just because people stop buying its products. It will be bulk of our own countrymen that shall be thrown out of employment. The author of the forward has rightly stated that we loose foreign exchange when we do buy a product of a multinational, but to what extent? He does not question or elaborate on that. He does not question the immense negetive fallout such a movement could have on our economy and employment scenario. AND we - like of flock of sheep - fall prey to the rhetoric and blindly forward such mails.

Pictured is a bonfire of British clothing, a real and
symbolic destruction of the British control of India,
and the precursor to spinning for independence.

Most of us that use the net are a fairly educated lot, it is our moral duty to stop such forwards and even educate the non-thinking people who fall prey to the gamut. 

The pre-independence movement may have been right for its time and helped us gain freedom from the British, but we need to take care and not let our economy slide backwards. 

Why do we need to protect our industry and coerce our countrymen to buy from them? In this world of global economy - Indian industry needs to become competitive and not remain protected in the garb of a swadeshi gimmick

Saturday 9: Reason to Believe.

Reason to Believe

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

Saturday 9: Reason to Believe
1. Has anyone asked you to believe in something that called for a huge leap of faith on your part?

Being an atheist - I always get suggestions to be a believer.

2. When is the last time you moved? Why did you move?

Almost 20 years ago (if you mean move house) - moved into my dream home.

3. Malls? ..or one Internet? Are you doing more online shopping this year? The polls say we are, but I'm curious about what the real people are doing.

More online - especially when I am abroad.

4. Do you remember the first meme you participated in and if so, what was it?

Saturday 9.

5. If you could invent something, what would it be?

Anything is fine - as long as it gets me the Nobel Prize.

6. Are you finished with your shopping? Do you still a few things to go? What? Not even a game plan? ...or is there just one person you're having trouble finding something for?

I have all I wanted... shall have to tell folks to lay off conventional gifts of clothes, accessories and after-shaves for my birthday  -- maybe a smart mod gadget would be more appropriate...

7. What's left to do at your place (or where you are going)? Is the tree up? ...or maybe you're just happy you found the Christmas coffee mug and are calling that good?

The tree only goes up when the grand children come down - not likely this Christmas.

8. Is your life turning out the way you thought it would when you were a kid? If not, is it better or worse?

Never dreamt so far ahead as a child - however, I seem to be content with what life has handed out to me.


9. Tell us about something you'll miss about 2010.

I shall miss being younger... am becoming a Senior Citizen :)


Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!

Saturday 9: Dark Lady

Dark Lady

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

Saturday 9: Dark Lady

1. Have you ever been to a fortune teller? If yes, what happened?

Yes - he predicted a job for me - which was highly unlikely in my circumstances (less than 1% chance); it materialized within a month.

2. How do you cope in an uncomfortable social situation?

Try to remain cool.

3. A genie appears (of course). She asks, “If you had 3 wishes but each took 3 years off your life, what would you wish for and why?”

Happiness for me(1), family(2) and humanity(3) - same order of preference. Do not need to live very long...

4. Would you rather lose your soul mate or never meet them at all?

Rather lose ....

5. What is the hardest thing that you have ever had to do?
Keeping my mouth shut...

6. Have you ever had a miracle happen to you or your loved ones?

No - I am too rational for that.

7. Tell us about a quote that you can relate to. Why can you relate with it?:
...the moving finger writes..., (Omar Khayyam). Its the truth.

8. What personality trait has gotten you into the most trouble?

My belief that I am a 'king'.

9. For those in The States, how was your Turkey Day? If not from the US, do you celebrate a day like Thanksgiving?

No.

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!

Thank you for your mail - Forwards # 9

(Thanks to Basant Nagdev for sharing)

As we approach the end of another year - I want to thank all of you for your educational e-mails over the past year. I am totally screwed up now and have little chance of recovery. 

I no longer open a bathroom door without using a paper towel, or have the waitress put lemon slices in my ice water without worrying about the bacteria on the lemon peel. 

I can't use the remote in a hotel room because I don't know what the last person was doing while flipping through the adult movie channels. 

I can't sit down on the hotel bedspread because I can only imagine what has happened on it since it was last washed....hmmmm 

I have trouble shaking hands with someone who has been driving because the number one pastime while driving alone is picking one's nose. 

Eating a little snack sends me on a guilt trip because I can only imagine how many gallons of trans fats I have consumed over the years. 

I can't touch any woman's purse for fear she has placed it on the floor of a public bathroom. 

I MUST ALSO SEND MY SPECIAL THANKS to whoever sent me the one about rat shit in the glue on envelopes because I now have to use a wet sponge with every envelope that needs sealing. 

ALSO, now I have to scrub the top of every can I open for the same reason. 

I no longer have any savings because I gave it to a sick girl (Penny Brown) who is about to die for the 1,387,258th time. 

I no longer have any money, but that will change once I receive the $15,000 that Bill Gates/Microsoft and AOL are sending me for participating in their special e-mail program. 

I no longer worry about my soul because I have 363,214 angels looking out for me, and St. Theresa's Novena has granted my every wish. 

I can't have a drink in a bar because I'll wake up in a bathtub full of ice with my kidneys gone. 

I can't eat at KFC because their chickens are actually horrible mutant freaks with no eyes, feet or feathers. 

I can't use cancer-causing deodorants even though I smell like a water buffalo on a hot day. 

THANKS TO ALL OF YOU I have learned that my prayers only get answered if I forward an e-mail to seven of my friends and make a wish within five minutes. 

BECAUSE OF YOUR CONCERN, I no longer drink Coca Cola because it can remove toilet stains. 

I no longer buy gas without taking someone along to watch the car so a serial killer doesn't crawl in my back seat when I'm filling up. 

  

I no longer drink Pepsi or Fanta since the people who make these products are atheists who refuse to put 'Under God' on their cans. 

I no longer use Cling Wrap in the microwave because it causes seven different types of cancer. 

AND THANKS FOR LETTING ME KNOW I can't boil a cup of water in the microwave anymore because it will blow up in my face... Disfiguring me for life. 

  

I no longer go to the movies because I could be pricked with a needle infected with AIDS when I sit down 

I no longer go to shopping malls because someone will drug me with a perfume sample and rob me. 

I no longer receive packages from UPS or Fedex since they are actually Al Qaeda agents in disguise. And I no longer answer the phone because someone will ask me to dial a number for which I will get a phone bill with calls to Jamaica, Uganda, Singapore, and Uzbekistan.  

I no longer buy cookies from Neiman-Marcus since I now have their recipe. 

THANKS TO YOU I can't use anyone's toilet but mine because a big black snake could be lurking under the seat and cause me instant death when it bites my ass. 

AND THANKS TO YOUR GREAT ADVICE I can't ever pick up a Toonie dropped in the parking lot because it probably was placed there by a sex molester waiting to grab me as I bend over... 

I no longer drive my car because buying gas from some companies supports Al Qaeda, and buying gas from all the others supports South American dictators. 

I can't do any gardening because I'm afraid I'll get bitten by the Violin Spider and my hand will fall off. 

If you don't send this e-mail to at least 144,000 people in the next 70 minutes, a large dove with diarrhea will land on your head at 5:00 p.m. tomorrow afternoon, and the fleas from 120 camels will infest your back, causing you to grow a hairy hump I know this will occur because it actually happened to a friend of my next door neighbor's ex-mother-in-law's second husband's cousin's best friend's beautician ... 

Oh, by the way..... 

A German scientist from Argentina , after a lengthy study, has discovered that people with insufficient brain activity read their e-mail with their hand on the mouse. 

Don't bother taking it off now, it's too late. 

PS: I now keep my toothbrush in the living room, because I was told by e-mail that water splashes over 6 ft. out of the toilet.